| Short Title: | Abolition of Corporal Punishment Act, 1997 |
| Long Title: | Act to provide for the abolishment of corporal punishment authorised in legislation; and to provide for matters connected therewith. |
| Citation: | Act No. 33 of 1997 |
| Enacted By: | Parliament of South Africa |
| Date Assented: | 28 August 1997 |
| Date Commenced: | 5 September 1997 |
| Status: | spent |
The Abolition of Corporal Punishment Act, 1997 (Act No. 33 of 1997) is an act of the Parliament of South Africa that abolished judicial corporal punishment.[1] It followed the Constitutional Court's 1995 decision in the case of S v Williams and Others that caning of juveniles was unconstitutional. Although the ruling in S v Williams was limited to the corporal punishment of males under the age of 21, Justice Langa mentioned in dicta that there was a consensus that corporal punishment of adults was also unconstitutional.[2]
The act contains two substantive sections. The first provides that "any law which authorises corporal punishment by a court of law, including a court of traditional leaders," is repealed to the extent that it authorises such a punishment. The second makes specific textual amendments various statutes, including the Black Administration Act, the Magistrates' Courts Act and the Criminal Procedure Act, to remove references to corporal punishment.